7/21/12

Bread Machine: Garlic Bread Pizza Dough

Every Saturday night is homemade pizza at my house. It's a standing movie date at home for my hubby and me. Any child (they are teenagers and older) that happens to be home is welcome to join us. Some nights we have a quiet night to ourselves, and other nights, we have a house full. It's become a fun tradtion for us.

Let me give you a disclaimer. I can not make bread. Seriously, that and Jello. (I know Jello?) but, with my handy dandy bread maker I've gotten pretty good at Pizza dough. I know your thinking, wait, Tip Garden is supposed to be about quick and easy ideas. Home made pizza dough is not quick nor for some of us, easy. But using the bread machine for most of work is easy and it is a super money saver for sure!

Over the years I've developed my own recipe for a Garlic Bread pizza dough that my family says puts any pizza, calzone or stromboli over the top. Finally, I thought I'd share it with you. It makes enough for two pizza's. Hubby & I like thin crust and this recipe can be rolled out to make 2 stinkin' large (16 inch) pizza's, so if you make smaller ones you'll get a thicker crust.

Start bread maker on the dough cycle. Watch dough as it begins to mix and add a tablespoon or two of water if you feel it is too dry. You want all the dough to mix into a ball with out being too dry or too sticky. Mine mixes and rises for 1 1/2 hours and looks like this when it's done:

Remove from pan onto a floured surface

and knead a few times to deflate the dough and make it workable.

Divide dough into two even pieces and shape into a ball. (It's easier to roll out a circle by starting with a circle!)

Roll out pizza dough, using rolling pin and extra flour as needed to keep it from sticking as you work with it. Don't be afraid to pick it up, flip it over, sprinkle more flour front and back and keep rolling. I tend to turn it a 1/4 turn constantly as I'm rolling it.

From here you can make it into pizza, stromboli's (or calzone's).

To transfer the dough to a pizza pan here's my trick:

Fold dough in half to make a half circle and then in half again to make a small triangle. Pick up dough and transfer it to the pan, placing the point of the triangle in the middle of the pan, then simple unfold the dough.

Ok, I think you can take the pizza from here! I bake mine at about 400 degree's for about 15 -17 minutes.

To make a stromboli or calzone, fill the bottom half of the rolled out dough with filling (sausage, cheese, etc.) leaving an inch of dough along the edges.

Sprinkle water along the bottom edge of dough (to help the folded over edge seal together with the bottom edge and fold the top half of dough over the filling. Pinch the two seams together to seal the stromboli.

I have a recipe for plain pizza dough that I used, but I'd love to try this flavored dough! There are only 2 of us though, so if I make 1/2 the recipe (for 1 pizza) will the dough setting on the machine still be the appropriate amount of time, or will that not work? Or, could I make the whole batch and freeze 1/2 of the dough?Thanks!

One more question! My other recipe has you bake the dough on its own a bit first, then take it out and add the toppings and bake some more. Do you just bake this all at once (raw dough with all the toppings)? Thanks again, I can't wait to try this!

Christine great question! My recipe calls for Bread Machine or Fast acting yeast. Today there are several types of yeast not just the standard active dry you may be referring too, which does require a bit of sugar to activate. The "Instant" type has added yeast enhancers in them and are meant to be used straight into a recipe and no sugar is needed. Here is a link to a great description of all the yeasts and how they are made, used etc. (and the comment section was a reader too!) Thanks and let me know how it turns out and with which type of yeast you used: Link: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/2815/active-yeast-vs-instant-yeast

Forgive me for the delay in responding! I've actually been without internet due to a mix up in switching providers, and am just now getting back "on line". I am SOOO happy to hear that you all enjoy it! Thanks for the feedback, made my day!Best wishes!

what type of yeast did you use? It sounds like you used regular yeast which does require sugar to activate. This recipe uses fast rise yeast which does not require any sugar or water and can be mixed right into the dough.

Yummiest pizza dough recipe I've tried. I wanted something other than just plain pizza dough and this is it! And it's just as easy. I've made it a couple of times and always comes out perfect, thanks so much!!

I'm embarrassing late in replying back to you, but I am so thankful you like it! I literally make this all the time too! Thanks Sarah for coming back to comment, you made my day today when I stumbled onto it!